Susan and Severin Hoch’s work to provide water wells in developing countries is more than just a drop in the bucket. It’s 37 drops, to be exact. That’s the number of wells the Vancouver couple have funded through their charity, The Water Team.

The couple started on their mission of bringing water to world’s driest regions in 1992. Through World Vision, they sponsored a child in Zimbabwe named Shamiso Madzanika, then nine, one of 23 youth they have sponsored over the years (they currently have nine foster children in Rwanda, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Mozambique, Malawi, Philippines and Chad.)

That year, Shamiso wrote to them about the drought that plagued her village, and her country: that year Zimbabwe suffered one of its worst-ever droughts. The Hochs decided to pay to drill a well.

It took two years and lots of paper work, but by 1994, Susan recalls, “we heard that Shamiso, her family and the neighbours all had clean water close to their homes and that everyone was once again healthy and had enough water to do whatever they wanted. We learned that her mother had been able to start a vegetable garden and take the extra vegetables to market.” It also reduced the community’s exposure to water-borne diseases like cholera.

The complete transformation that a well could create struck a chord with the couple and they vowed to drill more, paying for seven more wells or water projects over the following years.

Then, in 2001, they and about a dozen friends participated in a World Vision run under “The Water Team” banner and raised enough money to build a well in Mozambique. They ran again in 2002 and built a well in Nicaragua with the proceeds. The Water Team was born.

They decided to strike out on their own and fundraise year-round and build their wells through a non-profit group called Lifewater Canada. Lifewater was founded by Ontario resident Jim Gehrels. It has little overhead and builds wells for about $3,000 compared to more than $10,000 at other charities.

What started as a trickle, became a flood. Since 2001, the team has grown to more than 100 people and all told they have built 37 wells, primarily in Liberia, Kenya, and Nigeria — ten in Liberia and Nigeria in the last year alone.

“Liberia‘s need for clean water is particularly urgent because during the civil war, so many of the wells were contaminated as a device to make the population suffer. Now the war is over and rebuilding is in progress, building new wells is a high priority,” explains the 60-year-old mother of four.

The goal of The Water Team is to “bring clean water to those who don’t have it and to spread awareness about the right to water.” Their philosophy? “Water is a human right.” The team posts pictures of each of their projects on their website upon completion for donors to inspect for full transparency and maintain 100 per cent of all donations go straight to building wells.

“In Canada most of us are blessed with readily available clean water, the basis of life. As a minimum for the world, it seems reasonable to help every human being get that right, to have the dignity of living with clean water and all it entails,” she says.

“Getting people clean water is a hand up — not a handout. We are all blessed to have been born with that hand up – we mustn’t forget about those people who were not so fortunate. We could have been born in countries without clean water. We are lucky enough to have been born here in a situation that allows us to be healthy and strong and financially able to help others.”

The registered charity points out that lack of clean water causes 80 per cent of sickness and death, from diseases like cholera, dysentery, typhoid, guinea worm and hepatitis. In fact, the team cites statistics showing 30,000 people die each day for lack of clean water, and the toll could rise to 135 million people by 2020 if we do nothing.

“The statistics are staggering, over 1.1 billion people, our fellow human beings, do not have access to clean water. Every year four million people die because they lack clean water. A child die every twelve seconds. It’s such a silent tragedy. We, in our easy North American lives, don’t experience it or see it and so the problem is overlooked by many. If the current trend continues, it is estimated that two-thirds of the people on the planet will not have access to clean water by the year 2025,” says the nutritionist and property manager.

Meanwhile, lack of access to wells keeps women and girls virtual slaves to water collection, walking long distances to carry back enough water for their family’s needs — leaving little time or energy for schooling or other productive work.

The couple do all their work from home: “We always say that instead of going to see a well, we can put the money to building one,” Susan explains. Most of their support comes from B.C. residents too. Many of their fundraisers come from the community — Susan accepted a recent donation of $4,000 from students at St. Jean Brebeuf Regional Secondary. Even the elementary-school aged son of one of their members, Gabriel Dee, has pitched in, raising money for wells by shining shoes and doing household chores.

“We are just a small group of people trying to get clean water to those who need it,” Susan says modestly. “Team members keep sending in donations. We feel we are simply the conduit. We put it out there and people are inspired to participate and help out their fellow men.”

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